The bloodiest 47 acres in America. That’s the first thing you’ll read when you log on to the Missouri State Penitentiary’s website. Well, I don’t know about you but that’s enough advertisement for me… Sign me up! Lucky for me, I’ve got several friends that wanted to take a walk through black holes and haunted prison cells too.

The prison was open until 2004. It served the State of Missouri for 168 years and is known to be the oldest continually operating prison west of the Mississippi. It’s housed famous, or should I say infamous, inmates such as James Earl Ray who escaped from the prison and later assassinated Dr Martin Luther King Jr.

Back in October, at the height of all things creepy and haunting, my best gal pals and I booked an evening tour at Mo State Penn. After the prison re-opened several years ago, hosting tours conducted by old prison guards, I knew I had to see this place. I’ve heard lots of positive reviews of other tour-goers who were told first hand accounts of prison life, through the eyes of these prison guards. We weren’t so lucky as to get an ex-guard as our tour guide but our guide was passionate about her storytelling, nonetheless, and provided us with a great experience of one of the creepiest places in the capital city.

We did the 2-hour history tour starting at 8:00 pm. Although you won’t tour the entire property, you will absolutely see all the highlights of the buildings still present. Our tour guide was highly knowledgeable about the history of the prison itself, the stories of some of the famous inmates that were housed here, and of course she had plenty of ghost stories to share. If you love all things paranormal, this place will be right up your alley!

There is some walking involved (not extensive but a moderate amount) and there is no air conditioning or heating in the buildings so be sure and dress appropriately. Although even in the warm months, the dead air of these haunted prison cells will likely keep your blood cold enough (with goosebumps from head to toe) that there’s no need to worry.

One of the stories shared was of the first female inmate. This lucky gal was imprisoned here in Missouri and since she was the first lady they had seen, they weren’t really sure what they were going to do with her. Since they couldn’t seem to come up with a good solution, they opened the front door and let her go on her merry way. Can you believe that?? Hmmm… wonder what happened to her?

There was a massive prison riot in 1954. The tour guide brought us out into the main courtyard so that she could really paint the picture of where things happened during this infamous riot. Seeing the guard towers and hearing the story depicted through this lens makes you feel like you can see just what happened on that fateful day. There were guards and inmates alike that lost lives that day. It was a bloody battle and the guards nearly lost control of the whole joint within the span of a few hours.

My favorite tales were personal accounts from our tour guides’ experiences while she’s been on tour. She’s witnessed people passing out because they saw the lady in white and were so shook up they were unable to continue on with the tour. She let us listen to a recording they did with those ghost-hunter thingy-ma-bobs that record “ghost talk”. As we stopped at a spot in the first building, where we were about to converge through a walkway, she told us a story of the last time ghost hunters were in the building and she let us listen to the recording they were able to capture that night in this exact location. The whole group clearly heard a woman’s whispers cries, “They cut me to pieces”. If that’s not enough to give you the heebie-jeebies, I certainly don’t know what is.

I will say, the four of us were fully prepared to feel a hand brushing against us in one of the basement cells where they turned out the lights and left us in complete darkness for several minutes. It was pitch black, we couldn’t see a darn thing (save for the lady who wasn’t following the rules for the first minute and had her dang flashlight still on), and the tour guide and friendly local PD officer (who was there for moral support), spoke throughout this black out period about the shadow that kept passing between them. Was it really there? Eh- hard to say. We saw nothing of the sort. Still, creepy as all get out and it had my heartbeat kicked up a notch.

You’ve never sat in a gas chamber before, you say? Well, now’s your chance. At the back of the property, along the Missouri River bluffs, in what would otherwise be a lovely spot to sit and enjoy the view, sits the small building that housed the gas chamber. A simple, stone building with nothing but two small rooms, one for those who’ve committed the crimes who will perish soon, and one for those wishing to witness their death. You’ll find a poster of all the criminals that were put to death in this small room, including their age and crime. It’s shocking to read how many of these folks were as young as they were. Many were in their 30s and 40s. Back then, America didn’t joke around with all this judicial system stuff; they got straight to the point.

And that’s where the tour ends. You’ll find yourself slightly obsessed with wanting to know more of the history and seeing more of the grounds. It’s a big part of history in Missouri’s State Capital City and I’m so pleased that it’s not been deemed otherwise and torn down to the ground. I love that it’s bringing some tourism dollars to Jefferson City and hope it continues to bring many more crowds, in for the spooking, throughout the years to come.

There are a variety of tours offered from history tours to ghost tours and offered at different times and for fewer or longer hours. All tours are very affordable. Remember to dress for the weather, as there is no running HVAC system. Click here to go to their website and learn more or to reserve tour tickets. The Missouri State Penitentiary is located at 115 Lafayette St Jefferson City, Missouri.

Tip: If you want to get in the cell block mood before you start your tour, grab dinner and drinks at Prison Brews, located just several blocks from Mo State Penn. This microbrewery plays off the prison theme with cell mate vibes throughout and each brew has it’s own play on words related to inmate life. Click here to read more about Prison Brews.